GrumbleGrumbleBitchMoan

Cranky Pants – yep, that’s me. ‘Tis the season to be jolly and all that, but how the heck am I supposed to be merry when people keep pissing me off?

Someone declared today to be “pay-it-forward’ day. I suppose that in the spirit of things in general I could’ve let the lady cutting in line for kiss-and-ride go in front of me. But I just couldn’t do it. How hard is it to follow the rules and get in line like everyone else?

Here we are, in front of the school where our kids are learning, among other things, how to get in line and cooperate with each other. Yet some of their parents can’t seem to figure out how to behave. It isn’t just kiss-and-ride either.

A few years ago, we attended a strings concert for the Eldest. We got there on time, dropped off a plate of cookies for the reception afterwards, and took our seats. It was a fantastic performance – those kids worked really hard.  After the performance, the director asked that the audience to help gather chairs and put them away. No problem – it’s easy to pitch in and give a hand. Many hands make light work, etc., etc., right?

Apparently not. By the time we finished helping put away the chairs and made our way to the cafeteria for the reception, most of the dessert plates had been cleared. We and several other families were shocked to see that we were mostly out of luck. Only a few sad little cookies remained. That wouldn’t have been an issue except for one not-so-tiny problem. Many of the adults and children who had already gone through the line seemed to be either stocking up for the winter or were using the reception food for their own personal cookie plate supply. Several people were walking around with plates overflowing with cookies and other desserts – more than they could reasonably eat that night, much less at the reception. There’s no words to describe how utterly rude their behavior was. I couldn’t believe my eyes. What a terrible example to provide for their kids!

Unsurprisingly, there was no reception after the Spring strings concert. I guess the staff had learned their lesson. Some people can’t be trusted to act politely and share. In this case, several rotten apples spoiled it for the rest of the group. It’s hard to feel charitable in the face of greed – perhaps that’s more the reason I should try harder in the future.

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